Rose in Bloom (Sex and the Season #2)(75)

If only…



When Lily and Daniel’s carriage finally reached the house, it was near two in the morning and the house was quiet. Lily led Cameron into the main parlor and bade him wait.

“I’ll fetch Rose for you,” she said. “Get him a brandy or something.” She motioned to Daniel.

“What will it be, Price?” Daniel asked.

“Anything with alcohol in it. God, what will I say to her?”

“I’ll not tell you that I’m an expert on matters of the heart,” Daniel said. “I’m not, that’s for certain. And I’m not at all comfortable talking about this.”

“Nor am I.”

“But I will give you this one piece of advice. Tell her the truth. Don’t ever lie to her. Don’t ever keep something from her. You never know when she may not be around to hear it.”

“Your Grace?”

“I nearly lost Lily before I confessed my love to her,” Daniel said. “If I had… Well, it turned out fine, thank God.”

“Yes, I see.” He took the brandy Daniel offered and downed it in one gulp.

“Another?”

“No, I need my wits about me.” He paced back and forth. “Maybe one more. I’ll drink it slowly this time.”

Daniel refilled Cameron’s snifter as Lily strode in briskly.

“Rose isn’t in her chamber, Daniel.”

“She’s not?”

“No, and no one upstairs has seen her. I checked with Sophie and Ally, even Evan. I didn’t want to wake my parents or your mother. It would just worry them.”

“She’s likely not with any of them anyway,” Daniel said.

Cameron’s heart thumped, his nerves on edge. Was his beloved in danger? “We’ve got to find her.”

“My God, where could she be, Daniel?” Lily queried. “She’s been so upset about…everything.”

“This is all my fault.” Cameron tugged at his hair. “Where the devil is she?”

“Price,” Daniel said, “why did you leave her in the first place?”

“It’s a long story,” Cameron said. “I’d rather explain it to Rose before I explain it to anyone else.”

“All right,” Daniel said. “Well, we can’t just stand here, let’s look for her.”

“You stay here, Mr. Price,” Lily said. “You don’t know your way around the estate.”

“I can’t just wait here when she’s out there somewhere.”

“All right, all right, come with me then,” Lily said.

“I’ll check the stables and kennels, although what she’d be doing there at this hour is beyond me,” Daniel said. “You two look through the house.”

Lily and Cameron checked the conservatory, the library, the art gallery, the chapel. No Rose. “I suppose we should check all the vacant guest chambers, but that will take hours.”

“What about the ballroom?” Cameron asked.

“Why not?” Lily said, and they descended.

Rose was not in the ballroom. “My God,” Cameron said, shaking. “What if someone took her?”

“We have lots of servants, Mr. Price. They’re on duty at all hours. It would be nearly impossible for someone to kidnap a person under this roof.”

“Then if she’s gone, she went of her own accord?”

“Most likely.”

“Oh my God.” Cameron sat down in one of the chairs on the side of the ballroom. “What the hell have I done?”

“If she left, Mr. Price, someone would have seen her go. Yet when I questioned the servants, none of them had any knowledge.”

“They could have been paid off.”

“Our servants are very loyal.”

“Damn it!” Cameron stood and paced around the room. “I need some air.” He strode toward the double doors at the back of the ballroom, unlatched the lock, and went outside onto the terrace. He paced back and forth across the terrace, and then settled his elbows on the ledge and looked down.

There, lying under the stars, bathed in the glow of the moon, sleeping peacefully, was Rose.





Chapter Sixteen


“Rose, my love. Rose. Wake up.”

Rose stirred and opened her eyes. What a lovely dream. She was under the stars, and Cameron was gazing down at her with love in his eyes. He held a rose. She reached for him, closing her eyes again tightly, willing the dream to last. He wrapped his arms around her and lifted, carried her away…

“Wake up, sweetheart. Wake up.”

“No.” Rose refused to open her eyes. “Not yet. Don’t want to wake up.”

“Yes, sweetheart. Please.”

Rose opened her eyes, her vision slowly clearing. She was sitting in a chair. Was that Cameron kneeling before her? And where was she? “What is going on?”

“You’re in the ballroom, sweetheart. You fell asleep on the lawn,” Cameron said.

“Yes, yes, of course.” Rose remembered now. “What are you doing here?”

Cameron took her hands in his. “Your sister and the duke found me. They insisted I come see you. And Rose, I’m so glad I did.”